After 14 years of playing Vera’s DCI Stanhope, Brenda Blethyn has shown her support for the drama that will take over the iconic detective’s Sunday night slot.
Brenda Blethyn has publicly endorsed the show set to “replace” Vera in ITV’s Sunday night line-up, expressing her support via social media.
After a 14-year stint portraying one of television’s most iconic detectives, BAFTA-winning Brenda bid farewell to her role as DCI Stanhope when the final series of Vera aired on ITV in early January.
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Having shared the screen with Auf Wiedersehen Pet star Kevin Whately in the penultimate episode ‘Inside’, Brenda made her last appearance as Vera on January 2. The finale saw her renowned character pack up and leave Northumberland and City Police HQ for good, turning down a promotion and choosing to retire from her detective days.
Over 6 million viewers tuned in to witness Vera’s conclusion, leaving a gap in ITV’s schedule. Traditionally, new series of Vera occupied the 8pm slot on Sunday nights in January/February.
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Brenda bid farewell to her role as DCI Stanhope in January (Image: ITV)
Since Vera’s conclusion, both Playing Nice and Out There have premiered on Sunday evenings, with the latter scheduled to air its final two episodes this weekend.
The conclusion of Martin Clunes suspenseful Out There has opened up a slot for another gripping show, and it’s now officially confirmed that the hugely popular crime series Unforgotten is set to return for a stellar sixth season commencing Sunday, February 9.
Sinead Keenan and Sanjeev Bhaskar are reprising their lead roles in the critically-acclaimed drama penned by the multi-award-winning writer Chris Lang, reports Chronicle Live.
Chris couldn’t hide his excitement as he announced the comeback of Unforgotten on X (Twitter). He shared an image of Sinead and Sanjeev in character, along with the caption: “So this is happening #Unforgotten Playing Sundays and Mondays, for three weeks at 9pm on @ITV Very excited for you to see what we’ve been working on for two years. @SineadKeenan @TVSanjeev.”
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Brenda Blethyn has publicly endorsed the show set to “replace” Vera (Image: ITV)
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Guest star Emmet. J. Scanlan, known for The Fall and Hollyoaks, echoed the announcement confirming his participation by quoting Chris’ post.
Brenda engaged with it as well, sharing the update with her 79,000 followers while subtly suggesting she’ll be among the millions eagerly awaiting the new episodes.
In a press conference towards the close of last year, Brenda opened up about her departure from Vera. She cited the desire to spend more summer time with her family in the South as her prime motive, after dedicating every summer since 2011 to filming the beloved drama in the North East.
